Year of Love
by DayDreamer9
Summary: A Collection of Month themed ficlets that revolve around a certain pairing that I love in the SHE universe. Watch love bloom within a year's time for a pair of certain dark haired and redheaded doushi.
1. January

_This dandy little idea came to me via a set of pictures on deviantArt and have inspired me to make this little collection of cuteness. As I have said before with "Lotus Dreams", I'm a fan of this pairing and was thinking of making more, I just had to find the right inspiration XD The sequel to "Lotus Dreams", though, is still in progress. I enjoyed writing this and will continue to enjoy writing these tidbits Each chapter will be themed off the months that make up a year and I hope that you enjoy each and every one of them. Here's the very first chappie to commemorate the New Year XD_

_Oh, and I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi or Soul Hunter, it belongs to the guy who made the manga, Ryu Fujisaki. A wonderful man indeed…_

Snow Angel  
By DayDreamer9

Gentle flakes of pure, silky white fell pleasantly down from the sky, covering the ground with nothing but blankets upon blankets of chilling white snow. Trees were bare, flowers were hibernating, and all the animals were asleep until Spring. The chilly wind blew by, but many didn't notice as they were all kept safely away inside their homes, snuggling under blankets and coats, dreaming of sugarplums or drinking healthy warm soup to keep the cold away from their bones. Nothing was outside in the white winter wonderland but the slumbering trees toned a silent gray.

Save for the individual dressed solely in red, white, and blue hovering about a snow bank.

Thirteen-year old Li Nataku stared out over the wide expanses of snowed-down hills, not even so much as blinking when he felt the chilly touch of the snowflakes above. Long red scarf waving gently in the chilled wind, his night blue gaze wouldn't leave the mounds of snow and the trees that bore no leaves. Winter was usually a time for one to not be wearing such clothes like the ones Nataku currently wore, but the red-haired Paopei Human didn't appear to be bothered by the cold or the snow. He simply continued to stare, never blinking, never batting an eye at the persistent wind or shivering from the cold. Fiery red tresses blowing crazily in the wind, a bit of snow blew by his cheek, but he didn't respond.

He just continued to hover there, above the snow bank, and just stared at the ground.

"Figured that I might find you here."

A small spread of warmth around his shoulders and back accompanied the voice, brining to his attention that someone was behind him. Without turning around, he knew who it was and knew of the winter kimono that was draped almost protective over his shoulders, keeping the cold air out. But that really didn't concern Nataku right now as he continued with his focus…

"It's gonna be okay, you know?" the voice spoke up again after a few seconds worth of silence, "you don't have to worry."

No response; only a pair of eyes staring at the snow that lay out before him without much emotion…or did they?

"I promise," the voice continued, softly, knowing from asking that Nataku had been feeling the way that he did almost all of his life whenever this season came around, discovering what had baffled most people about the boy, "Spring will be here in another two months, you'll see."

Frowning more, Nataku barely appeared to even blink as, just then, a strange, almost glassy look became applied to his eyes as he finally parted his freezing lips to speak.

"Make it go away," his normally monotonous voice begged, sounding quite shaken though, this time around.

In response, the dark-haired doushi behind him wrapped an arm around his shoulders, drawing the younger boy closer to him. The redhead couldn't help himself, leaning his head against the other's shoulder, the glassy look in his eyes still present. It was a known fact amongst the select few who knew his story: being the incarnation of a lotus flower, the Paopei Human boy's reaction to the period of time where the Earth slept and waited for Spring's warmth and rain to come was an apprehensive one. The fear of falling asleep, succumbing to the cold, withering away…

And yet, at the same time, he still came out to wait for Spring, to see the rest of the flowers and trees come to life, for then his fear would truly be gone.

"C'mon," the green-eyed doushi gently said beside him, soft voice bringing a note of calmness onto the other boy's shivering soul, "let's go back inside. Nothing's wrong with a flower drinking some soup, y'know."

That last part was meant to bring out a bit of humor, trying to poke a bit of fun in order to avert the other's attention away from his fear. To an extent, it worked, as the other looked up from where his head lay on the other's shoulder and nodded, firmly, making an effort to not seem weak in front of the other.

"Alright," was all that he said, but it spoke volumes of silent thanks as the other doushi led the younger one back to the Outpost.

_Sweetness, eh? And yes, 'hovering about' was the correct terming and he's thirteen here because 1) doushi/Sennin barely age normal and 2) a SHE expert friend of mine stated it as a fact that that's his legit age in manga and anime. Shocking, eh? Well, anyway, that's about it for now, I hope you enjoyed what I perceived: since most of Nataku's aspects relate to flowers, I figured the fear of what harms them, like the cold of Winter, might unnerve him. Plus…it's a really nice opening for fluffy thoughts, wouldn't you agree? Expect the next chapter to arrive in February! XD_


	2. February

_Here it is; the month after January and it took quite some time for this to come out, mainly cuz I wanted to find a topic that fit February. So, finally, I decided to settle on the obvious._

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi or Soul Hunter, it belongs to the guy who made the manga, Ryu Fujisaki, which then bloomed into a cool anime that I fell in love with…_

Day of the Rose

By DayDreamer9

The sun was high in the clear blue sky, the cool wind flowed overhead with a simple, gentle touch, nothing like the biting cold of last month, thank goodness. No, Spring was on its way and if the gentler atmosphere didn't clue one in, the blooming flowers sure did. Color was slowly returning to the land, the bare trees were gaining buds while the grass poked out from under fading clumps of melted snow. Flowers, shrubs, and trees alike were all starting to wake up as the birds began a song of Springtime.

Of course, to a certain dark-haired doushi, the pleasant melody fell on deaf ears.

_Snore. Snore. Snore._

Taikoubou was fast asleep, emerald eyes closed and face peaceful as he lay there, arms folded behind his head as a makeshift pillow while his right knee was bent, the other straight in the grass. Not-so-soft snoring drifted above the healthy green plants all around him as he yawned occasionally and not even the buzzing bees that floated busily by his head could wake him up as sunlight splashed down around him.

But the person who was soundlessly hovering over him sure had a way of waking one such lazy doushi up.

"Taikoubou?"

The flat, but bold and obvious young voice broke through the serene silence around the doushi, even more so than the bees, and caused him to twitch in his sleep.

"Taikoubou?"

The voice came again and, this time, the doushi in question stirred a lot more as he felt his 'peace and quiet' shattered as his eyes fluttered open lazily, emerald green eyes catching a flash of scarlet against the blue sky. Yawning, he tried to turn over as he closed his eyes again, but the voice put a stop to **that** plan.

"Taikoubou, what are you doing?"

Groaning, Taikoubou rolled over again and opened his eyes, vision now clear to the point of identifying the scarlet-haired young man standing over him.

"Sleeping," he muttered, trying not to completely wake up, "now let me…"

"Why are you sleeping here?"

Wincing at how he was becoming more awake by the moment, Taikoubou cracked an eye open again, almost irritably.

"Because the flowers give off a nice, soothing smell," he replied, taking a deep inhale of the fragrance to calm his slight annoyance…and he was having such a nice dream too, "it helps me sleep. Speaking of which…goodnight."

His eyes weren't even closed, when…

"It's not even nighttime," came the voice again, though this time it seemed more…persistent? "why bother? And here out in the open of all places?"

Taikoubou, as much as he felt for the boy, was about ready to snap as he felt his chances of falling back into that beautiful, dreamy sleep again slipping away by the minute.

"Because it's a nice day outside," he growled out, yet trying to sound nice at the same time, "why waist it?"

And finally…silence.

_Aaahhh…yes! I finally flabbergasted him!_ the green-eyed doushi thought in triumph as he closed his eyes once more, allowing himself to drift back-

"Why these flowers?"

That did it.

"NATAKU!" Taikoubou shouted, bolting upright amidst the rosy red flowers and whirling on the boy, "why are you-"

And he stopped dead when he saw the look on the boy's face and realization dawned on him.

"Nataku…?" Taikoubou said, voice calmer and more understanding, though slightly surprised, "wait…are…you…jealous?"

The red-haired doushi, who had been looking down at Taikoubou all this time, blinked a couple of times.

"….what?" he asked, not expecting the question.

Taikoubou smiled as the clueless look replaced the somewhat faint, but fairly obvious look of indignation that had been all over the other's face.

"Jealous," he continued, "that I'm sleeping here, around the roses, instead of the lotus field like I normally do?"

Nataku just stared for a few seconds, eyes looking from Taikoubou to the roses that were crowded around him (and took the dark-haired doushi great care not to get stuck by any of the thorns while settling in) to even looking down at the ground. Taikoubou's sleepiness was no longer there, but he didn't mind now that he knew the truth, and the other's fidgetiness proved it; this kid seldom fidgeted and Taikoubou should know. Smiling lightly, he drew his legs in and stretched his arms out to work out the sleepiness from his joints, taking care not to get pricked.

"Look, I'm sleeping here because the lotus field isn't awake yet," he explained, still keeping eye contact with the boy through his stretches, "that doesn't mean that I won't go there when they're in full bloom, but where else can I sleep?"

Nataku had said nothing up until that last part.

"In bed," he said, bluntly.

This made Taikoubou laugh to the point of almost falling back into the thorns.

"Nataku, you're unbelievable," he said through his chuckles.

The redhead cocked his head to one side as the other doushi managed to compose himself, grinning over at Nataku with a broadening smile.

"I **meant** 'where else can I **nap** during the **daytime**'?" he reworded, still smiling coyly, "and I need a sweet fragrance to give me sweet dreams."

Once again, Nataku stared at his for a while before it happened; he started to hover closer to where Taikoubou sat, drifting over the thorns, and slowly started to lower himself beside a mildly surprised doushi. Taikoubou had a feeling that he was about to do something cute to get his attention, but this was a whole lot better than **blowing up** the rose patch.

"Whoa, easy," he warned, nonetheless, reaching up the help the young Paopei Human angle himself in the vacant spot safely, "careful, there's a lot of thorns."

Nataku didn't seem to bother or care about the roses as he managed to make it down without hassle from the plants…instead he found himself tumbling forward when he tried to balance himself into a sitting position, something that he seldom did for obvious reasons. But instead of toppling into a tangle of sharp thorns, he found himself being caught around the middle by a pair of familiar arms that dragged him down, albeit roughly, onto the clear patch in the center of it all. He looked up to see Taikoubou smiling at him as he removed his arms, ruffling the boy's wild red hair.

"You always were a klutz when it came to sitting," he said, smiling as he started to settle back down in the soft dirt, fresh from the melted snow that still hung about some of the flowers in the form of cold dew.

Normally, had it been anyone else besides his mother who'd said that, Nataku would have probably shot at them by now…but in this case, he didn't. Instead, he simply remained sitting down and watched as the other began to drift back into dreamland as they both sat amongst a wide patch of beautiful red roses. But it was no longer the scent of roses that the sleeping doushi smelled…

Instead, the fresh scent of lotus flowers wafted through the clean Spring air.

_Heh heh heh, Taikoubou's sleeping behavior is sorta mimicked off my own XD;;; I also figured that, since Nataku is technically the incarnation of a lotus, well…who says that it can't be possible? XD He's such a sweety. Enjoy, read, and review 'til next month!_


	3. March

_And good ole' March is here and here comes the four-leaf clovers! "grins" Always loved St. Patty's Day and now I FINALLY have some green in my wardrobe. Speaking of green, here's a bit of it inside the third chapter of my Year of Love fic. Enjoy!_

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi or Soul Hunter, it belongs to the guy who made the manga, Ryu Fujisaki, who ought to have a national holiday for such a cool series XD_

Just Lucky

By Daydreamer9

Golden sunlight poured over every inch of the pinkish-white dappled lotus field as midday reached its peak, the first signs of Spring betraying themselves via the rich, warm sunlight. Back at Chintoukan, many were rejoicing the familiar warmth that Spring introduced as the wintry months were left behind for next year. Clothes were being hung outside, children shed their coats, and a festival was being set into motion as the hustle and bustle began anew. But nobody paid any mind to the lotus field beyond the four walls, too busy with their homely business to watch nature come back to life.

Nobody…save for two individuals standing amidst the center of the fragrant blossoms.

Taikoubou grinned a huge grin as he watched his red-haired friend begin to float around the delicate flowers, looking over them all as they were revived by the Sun's warmth. He could tell that the younger boy was finally happy and that made himself happy as well, knowing how much Nataku hated the winter months for the obvious reasons. To bring him out here right now was just the thing that he needed after being cooped up inside all of December and January and only going out last month whenever Taikoubou did, minding the chill. The green-eyed doushi watched his friend float among the flowers that he considered his 'brothers' and was almost compelled to go after him, but decided not to; this was his time to be alone.

Nataku looked around the lotus field, at the multiple pink-white flowers that covered an entire field and sloped up the neighboring hillsides. Two months ago, this entire field was blanketed with nothing but snow; a freezing white cover that had sent all the flowers in sight into a deep slumber. The redhead had to wonder what had kept him from sharing their fate, why he hadn't shriveled away as well. Why not? Being reborn as the incarnation of a lotus flower had caused him to gain a couple of aspects that were traced back to plant-life – according to Taikoubou and his own Master, anyway – he'd assumed that he would share their lifecycle as well. It made sense; ever since his rebirth, he'd grown to fear the Winter Months when before they gave him no trouble and he'd come to realize that he didn't truly need to eat anymore as well (not that he could with the Doushi regulations staring him in the face and that eating anything grown from the earth would be considered cannibalism for him now), gaining nutrients from the Sun. Even some of his brain functions, like his nervous system – which was, for the most part, nonexistent in the human sense – were altered to one that matched that of a plant.

Did this mean that, he wasn't just a weapon, but a lotus as well?

Just what was he?

_A human? A weapon? A lotus?_ these things floated through his head as he basked in the warm glow of sunlight with the delicate flowers below, eyes downcast, _just what am I? I'm so many things and yet…I don't feel like I'm anything…_

His mother and Taikoubou had both said that he was human, that the weapons he was born with were merely a more exaggerated sign that he was a Sennin, but he could never truly accept it. Back at the outpost, people would stare at him whenever he left the house, even after all these years he could still hear the whispers behind his back and how nervous people would get if he ever approached them. Even his own father didn't favor him too much; he just couldn't accept the fact that his only son was born with supernatural abilities. Paopei Humans were rare, he knew that much, and he was the only one to come along in quite a long while. All of these things, mixed together, just made Nataku feel even more out of place than before. But coming here, to the lotus field, it just made everything that plagued his mind drift away like petals on the wind; he forgot all about his confusion and stress and focused solely on the strange, content feeling that was always present when he walked into the field.

A presence that he only felt around his mother whenever he was away from the field.

As he continued to float deeper into the pink and white field, looking over the flora that he considered to be his 'brethren', something caught his eye from below him.

"Huh?" he actually heard himself ask the empty air, then again, he'd never seen **this** sort of thing in the lotus field before.

It was almost hidden beneath the soft petals, but he saw it plain as day, and chose the lean over to investigate, a motion that he seldom did…which was probably the reason why he suddenly found himself tilting and then toppling into the flowers below with a startled yelp. He fell backwards into the flowers, the delicate petals brushing across his face, but that didn't really help to soothe the small sting he felt when he realized that he'd just embarrassed himself in front of-

"Nataku! Hey!"

Nataku honestly didn't know if it was possible to feel as miserable as he did right now, but then he saw the green-eyed doushi standing over him, concern written all over his face as he leaned over to help his redheaded friend up.

"Whoa, took quite a fall, eh?" Taikoubou joked, smiling as he helped the disgruntled teen sit up.

The misery just got worse as Nataku huffed impatiently as he turned away from the other's helping hands and instead re-angled himself amongst the lotus to find what had caused him to fall. With Taikoubou now kneeling beside him, he hoped that it wasn't ruined in the current mess; he wanted to know what it was. He was almost relieved when he saw that it was still there, but decided to get straight to the point; he didn't want to be on the ground for much longer.

"What's that?" he asked without looking at the other, eyes locked on the strange green thing hidden beneath the lotus.

Blinking in confusion, Taikoubou looked over the other's shoulder at where he was staring; he almost didn't see it, but then again, almost doesn't really count.

"Hey…" the older doushi said, surprised to be seeing what he knew of as a super rare sighting, "is that a…whoa, it is!" He turned to look over at Nataku with a big grin on his face. "How'd you spot it under all of these lotus flowers?"

Nataku's eyes remained on the small green growth in front of him, not even touched by the excitement in the other's voice; why get excited over a weed?

"It wasn't here last year," was the redhead's simple response.

Taikoubou couldn't really help but chuckle and shake his head.

"Of course, I might've guessed," he said, fondly, regarding the younger doushi with amazement, "you're come here so many times… I guess if anyone were to find a four-leaf clover amidst all this greenery, it **would** be you."

Now it was Nataku's turn to blink as he finally allowed himself to turn to regard the other doushi.

"Four-leaf clover?" he asked, his tone holding a curious note.

Nodding, Taikoubou reached down and, ever so gently, plucked the small clover from its resting place and held it up closer for his friend to see.

"Yep," he said, cheerfully spinning it between his thumb and index finger, "it's something I learned from my old village; it brings good luck to whoever finds it. And, since you're the one who found it…" That was when he turned to glance at Nataku, bringing the small clover over to him. "…you're the one who gets to make a wish."

Nataku stared down at the clover, completely clueless as the one who held it waited expectantly for the other to take it. The redhead turned back to Taikoubou…and suddenly seemed to realize just how close the two were at this point. Any closer and their noses would be colliding with one another. Normally, Nataku felt uncomfortable being this close to someone, it just made him want to fly as high as he could; the primary reason as to why he was constantly floating above others. The only thing keeping him from doing so was the strange feeling that he suddenly felt, a feeling that he recognized as the feeling, the one that he'd been musing about prior to all of this…

"A…wish?" he managed to get out, starting to realize that that one feeling wasn't the only one that was slowly creeping up on him.

Nodding, Taikoubou continued to grin and it was then that Nataku noticed how the doushi's eyes matched this 'four-leafed clover' almost perfectly.

"Yeah, but don't tell me what it is, okay?" the other said, winking, "otherwise it won't come true and you wouldn't want that, would you?"

At this, he took the redhead's hand, startling him a little as Taikoubou managed to place the small clover inside. Staring down at the small, four-leafed plant in a mixture of confusion and curiosity, Nataku didn't really notice as Taikoubou stood up and started to walk away, but his voice snapped him out of his thoughts.

"We'd better get back," he called back over his shoulder, still cheerful, "wait until your Mom finds out what you found; those things are **really** rare…"

Still kneeling, Nataku looked over his shoulder to watch the other doushi walk away, but he still felt that feeling again, the one that he never thought he'd feel around anyone else but his mother and this field. Still puzzling over it, the redhead looked back down at the small clover that was now in his hand for a few seconds more, recalling what Taikoubou said, before turning back over his shoulder.

"Taikoubou?" he called out.

"Yeah?" came the simple response.

Taking a moment to wonder why the air suddenly felt a bit warmer as it blew past his face, Nataku asked his question as he held the clover protectively from the wind.

"…could you…help me up?"

_And there ya go "smiles" I actually had a bit of trouble with this one as I had two separate ideas and so I finally just picked one out. Hope you liked it; so many things have happened this month, I didn't even know if I'd finish it on time. Yay, me! XD I'll try to work on the next chapter ASAP and until then, review!_


	4. April

_And onwards to April and all of its showers! I admit, this has got to be one of the easiest chappies I've ever written, seeing as how I got a lot of inspiration in many places. Though many anime fans might just recognize the title of the chappie…what can I say? It was too good a title to pass up…_

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi or Soul Hunter, it belongs to the guy who made the manga, Ryu Fujisaki, who I'd actually like to meet one day "smiles"_

Rainy Day Man

By DayDreamer9

Thunder boomed overhead, but it showed no sign of lightning bolts as rain continued to pour from the angry black clouds above. The air carried a chill with it, almost misty in essence, while the wind itself blew at a moderate pace. The pale flashes of light from above lit up the countryside, albeit briefly, especially highlighting a lone tree amidst the broad expanse of meadow that went on for miles. Wind rustled the wet leaves, but everything beneath the tree itself was quite dry…save for the disgruntled redhead underneath it.

Sitting down with his legs drawn in to his chest, this was the last place that Nataku expected to be today, but then again, a lot of things happened today that he hadn't expected. And remembering them just gave him further reason to sulk…

_Stupid…_

He felt miserable.

He wasn't quite used to that emotion yet, but that was how he felt; simply miserable with a nauseating feeling at the pit of his stomach. His arms were wrapped around his knees, hugging them closer to his body as a cool wind whipped by, carrying raindrops along with it as they splattered across the redhead's face. Not that he noticed; many who knew Nataku well and came across him like this would have said that this was **way** out of his character…unless they'd been in his home less than five minutes ago and witnessed the events that led up to this.

_Stupid…_

A lot of crazy, upsetting things may have happened in his life, but today's events were worse than any angry Dragon Spirit or Youkai Sennin assault he'd ever lived through. Those were easy to brush off, but this…

"Stupid…" this time, he whispered the bitter word to himself with lots of bitterness in his voice to go with it.

The sound of footsteps crunching through the wet, soggy grass made the redhead alert, but then again, he had a feeling that he knew who it was. He didn't want to deal with this right now and turned away from the person who walked up to the tree that he was hiding under, a slick, soaked cloth draped over his head to act as a feeble protection from the rain. For a while, neither one spoke, they just let the rain speak for them, the wet roar echoing all around them with an occasional thunder boom before the one standing before the newcomer spoke.

"She's worried about you, y'know? She'd like for you to come back…"

The nausea only grew worse and Nataku had no clue with how to deal with it; it simply made him more miserable and even more upset.

"I don't care," he muttered, flatly, still not looking up.

From where he stood just bordering the protection of the tree, Taikoubou heaved a heavy sigh.

"Of course you do," he retaliated, mildly, knowing that this was about to become a battle of wills.

A scowl came across Nataku's face; he didn't need this…

"What makes you so sure?" he huffed, still not meeting the other's sad gaze.

"Because you wouldn't have flown out here in the pouring rain feeling the way that you do if you didn't," Taikoubou pointed out, voice growing firm.

Clenching his fists even tighter and feeling his shoulders stiffen, the young Paopei Human fought the urge to just start opening fire, his standard reaction for an oncoming temper tantrum. For the older doushi in front of him a ways, though, he knew that the younger of the duo was going through something that he viewed as sacrilegious in his private mind, and decided to at least **try** to undermine the insecurity.

"Nataku, it's **okay**," he said, soothingly as if he were speaking to a small child, leaning forward a bit, "a lot of kids go through this with their parents. It's not a sin. And it doesn't mean that she doesn't love you any less."

No response.

The redhead just continued to sit there and sulk, completely ignoring the fact that he was soaking wet, his fiery red hair plastered around his shoulders. Taikoubou was honestly surprised that the Kontenryo wasn't reacting, but he was feeling more concerned now than anything else. So, he steeled himself and took a step forward…and the minute he entered the shaded circle beneath the dripping wet leaves, the other's arm came up almost automatically, aiming for the other's chest. Taikoubou stopped and stared evenly at the warning for a couple of seconds before merely sidestepping it and continuing towards the other, face set in a determined frown. Nataku said and did nothing, not even lowering his arm, as the other unfolded the bundle that he'd kept close to his chest, safe from the raging rain beyond their safe shelter.

"Look, you both had a bad day," he spoke, calmly, draping the warm, dry blanket over the other's shoulders, "and you were both snappy, so of **course** you'd clash like that. Neither of you meant it, it just happened. It doesn't mean she hates you or you hate her. If anything, she's more upset now than angry."

He could have sworn he saw the younger doushi's shoulders twitch a bit, but in the dim light, he wasn't too sure. He could understand the redhead's turmoil, though; his mother was the very center of his universe, one of the very few people that he cared about and one of the even fewer people that understood him…and today was the very first time that they'd ever fought. After they'd come to a halt in the proverbial 'vocal assault', however, Nataku seemed to realize what had just happened and something in the way he viewed things got a very big crack in it. He'd bolted from the room and out the door before anyone could say anything and had vanished for practically an hour. His mother was starting to get hysterical, she herself feeling immense guilt for the blowout they'd had, and the last time Taikoubou had seen her, she was hopelessly sobbing in her home with a rather frazzled and very surprised husband trying to calm her down.

He hadn't been succeeding, from what he'd seen.

Heaving a heavy sigh, Taikoubou shifted his brilliant green eyes down at the young boy sitting next to him as he himself leaned over, lowering the other's still outstretched arm.

"Look…when I was way younger and still mortal, I had a fight with my Dad," he said in a low voice as memories of a far time came rolling back to him, "it was the first time that **we'd** ever fought; we got along great normally. Fishing, hiking, it was great being with him. But I felt so miserable that day…I didn't mean to say half of the things that I did, but father and I, we……" Taikoubou stopped for a second to glance at the redhead, but received no sign that he was listening or even paying attention. "I never got the chance to say that I was sorry; things remained tense between us…until the day came when…the-" Taikoubou had to stop there, taking deep breathes to fight down his own mess of emotions that this talk was bringing back to him. "We never apologized to one another and now we'll never have the chance to do so. Do you want the exact same thing to happen here? Do you **want** to put off saying your sorry and putting this whole mess behind you until it's too late?"

There was silence; no speaking, no response, no retorting, only silence…and the rain.

Taikoubou was just about ready to get up and leave the other alone for a while when the other took him by surprise by unwrapping his arms from his legs and pushing himself up, wobbling a bit, but managing to get up without hassle. Hurriedly, the dark-haired doushi jumped to his feet and stood beside the boy, looking to him for a sign that he was all right and not about to bolt again. To is surprise, and utter shock as well, the other's head was still hung and now there was no denying the fact that his shoulders were shaking. A slight realization coming to him, Taikoubou walked around to the front of the boy, reaching out gently.

"Hey," he whispered, concerned, slipping a finger under the boy's chin to raise his head up so that he could see his face.

Even though he expected it, he was still nonetheless shocked to see the other's night blue eyes glistening and filled with sorrow. Without one word, Taikoubou's arms wrapped around the other and pulled him in, Nataku responding – rather clumsily – by returning the gesture, burying his face in the other's chest. Even the pounding rain couldn't drown out the muffled, but still audible sobs as the young Paopei Human cried for the very first time since he was born. Taikoubou didn't expect it to be over anytime soon, knowing that the boy had a lot to get off his chest; he was more than happy to allow the other to cry in his arms. He rubbed the boy's back and hair rhythmically, in a soothing pattern that his mother used to do whenever he was upset…including that night and many nights after, when he'd been too proud to say two simple words. Both stood there, the rain completely blotted out as it felt as if only an hour passed.

After a while, the rain beyond the cover of the tree started to lessen more and more, the black clouds growing a few shades lighter as the storm started to pass, the wind slowly growing humid, dropping its icy touch. It seemed like it'd been an hour, who truly knew, but the young boy's sobs seemed to subside along with the rain until he was just sniffling a bit, the dark-haired doushi with him raising his hands to pull the blanket closer to his body. Looking up, Nataku was a bit surprised that Taikoubou hadn't brushed him off or even teased him for such a weakness, but instead smiled at him with understanding. Nataku himself was more than just a little embarrassed…as well as confused; he cried, he never thought that he was capable of doing such a thing before, was it possible for a weapon to cry? He reached up to rub away the small droplets of water that fell from his eyes…but was surprised to see somebody doing it for him.

"Better?" said 'somebody' asked, warmly.

Sniffling a bit more, Nataku gave a sheepish nod as the other placed an arm around his shoulders, giving them a firm squeeze.

"Let's head back now, 'kay?" he asked, emerald eyes almost bright as the stars that were starting to appear in the now partly clouded sky.

Nataku couldn't help but stare at him for a few seconds before giving a small nod, breathing in the wet night air as they left the protective shade of the tree that gave them both comfort and back towards the place where Nataku was determined to make things right.

"Hey…Taikoubou?"

"Yeah?"

"……what did you and your father…what did you fight about?"

"Same thing that you and your Mom fought over……something that wasn't worth it. Don't ever make the same mistake that I did, okay?"

"…okay."

_And there you have it; all completed in just a day XD Am I cool or what? Teeheehee, but anyway, I digress; this does it for April, make sure that you watch out for May in about a month's time. See ya later! Oh! And please review!!_


	5. May

_And now comes May and it's flowers! Has anyone noticed that each month is associated with some kind of natural occurrence? Eh, maybe I'm just a whimsical person "sweatdrops" Anyway, like April, this little bit came from a lil' bit of inspiration in real life._

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi aka Soul Hunter, nor do I own its characters and plots, those belong to Mr. Ryu Fujisaki, I just own this little pairing and the cute storylines that go with it._

Where Flowers Come From  
By Daydreamer9

_Knock Knock. _

No reply.

Taikoubou stood there staring at the door at the end of the hall for a minute, debating on what to do as he shifted the bundle in his arms a bit. Finally, after waiting two minutes without a proper response, he opened his mouth and called out to…

"Nataku?" he said, softly yet loud enough to be heard from the other side of the door, "buddy, you in there?"

Nothing.

For a few seconds, the green-eyed doushi figured that he was asleep, but then he remembered overhearing him while his mother was inside, fussing all over him and completely worried in a very motherly fashion. To say he was 'taking this like a man' wouldn't be the whole truth as he was currently 'taking this like a kid', even though technically he **was** a kid. Overall, if anything, Taikoubou knew that the redhead was simply humiliated and decided to try a different approach to test this theory.

"Room service," he declared in a cheerier voice, "lotsa very fine breakfast foods; salad, carrot juice, fruit-"

"Get lost."

Bingo.

_We have consciousness,_ he thought, triumphantly, opening the door without a second thought as he quickly hid the bundle behind him.

The room he entered was sunlit and warm with the mid-morning sunlight spilling in through the window on the wall opposite to where he was standing. Against the right wall was what appeared to be a bookshelf with quite a number of literature on the shelves while by the window he was a bit surprised to see a couple of plants…mainly herbal plants, nothing edible or flowery. Against the left wall was a bed, plain and ordinary, with a not-so-ordinary red-haired Paopei Human lying in it…**not** looking very happy and that said a lot for him. Making his way over to the bed with the cheeriest of looks on his face, Taikoubou made certain to hold the bundle carefully behind his back to make sure that his friend wouldn't see it.

"Hey, buddy, how's it going?" he asked, as nonchalantly as possible.

The look Nataku was giving him was a sure indication that today wasn't one of his best.

"I said get lost," he grumbled, blank voice now tinged with embarrassment as he tried to turn over in bed.

Not losing his cheer, Taikoubou discreetly fiddled with the buddle for a couple of moments before trying another approach.

"Saw your Mom in here, earlier," he said, craning his neck to see out the window, seeing as how the other's irritated expression wasn't going to change anytime soon, "y'know, I think that she's just starting to calm down a little…"

Upon hearing this, Nataku actually raised an eyebrow up at his dark-haired 'friend'.

"Only 'a little'?" he asked, the irritation and embarrassment in his voice fading, which was a good sign; the less annoyed he was, the better the atmosphere inside the room.

"Is that sarcasm I hear?" Taikoubou asked with a 100 cheerful, confident voice, "my, you must be feeling a whole lot better."

Reminded of his predicament, Nataku scowled again and looked away.

"Didn't I tell you to get lost?" he asked, trying to turn away completely again.

Taikoubou could only smirk; he'd heard from Nataku's mother how he'd get like this whenever he got hurt, sick, or punished…by his father, of course. Embarrassed, grumpy, and not really in the mood to see another living soul besides his mother, he didn't even like looking at his reflection. Yup, taking the entire ordeal like a kid, a perfectly normal kid…

"Look," Taikoubou said, determined to take the bull by the horns with a cheery note still in his voice, "it's not that big a deal-"

"Excuse me?" the redhead cut him off, giving him a look as he struggled to sit up in bed.

Grimacing only slightly so as not to let the other realize that he was trying not to shrivel under the look he was getting, no matter how vacant it appeared, the emerald-eyed doushi suddenly realized that that probably wasn't the right thing to say, given the circumstances.

"Well, I mean…er…" Taikoubou shuffled, uneasily, before finally deciding to use his trump card to wiggle his way out of trouble. So, replacing his squeamish look with a peppy smirk, he removed the bundle from behind his back and held it out to the other. "Here you go."

Nataku blinked as he looked at the bundle that was being held out to him; wrapped in beige clothe with a slim cord to hold the fabric in place, it didn't look too special, albeit it was a bit lumpy…and had a goofy-looking smiley face drawn with the writing 'Get Better Soon' alongside it on the front that could only have been made by Taikoubou. He stared at it for a second before looking back up to the robed doushi.

"What is it?" he asked, bluntly.

The corners of Taikoubou's mouth twitched into a slightly bigger smirk for a second before turning neutral again; he wasn't giving the rather observant redhead any clues.

"Duh, it's a 'get-well-gift'," he said, pushing the bundle closer to Nataku, who looked back down at it for a second. After what seemed like forever, he finally took it hesitantly in his hands. "Careful, the bottom is breakable."

Hearing the other's words, but not understanding them, Nataku held the bundle steadily in his hands regardless, peering down at the silky cloth for a while, unsure of what to do…

"Um, aren't you gonna open it?" Taikoubou asked, curiously leaning over his friend…who glanced up at him.

"Oh," he said, realization dawning, and looked away just in time to avoid seeing Taikoubou roll his eyes, fondly.

Carefully sliding the cord off the bundle, Nataku started to tug the cloth away…and his eyes widened at what he found beneath. It was a plant. With a small, porcelain green bowl as the base that held a small portion of rich-looking soil, small green stalks rose up from the brown, with two bulbs of pinkish-red flowers at the tips just beginning to bloom. He stared at it long and hard for a while before turning back to look up at a smiling Taikoubou questioningly.

"Whenever someone gets really hurt or sick, someone who cares about them will usually bring them flowers," the other doushi explained, "since only lotus grew here, I had to search some of the surrounding valleys to find some good ones. Y'know, since you don't seem to like roses…"

Nataku stared at him before turning back to the two blooming buds and stared some more. These didn't grow for miles; had he really gone that far for them…for him?

"They say the Earth laughs in flowers."

Nataku turned back to look at the other as Taikoubou turned to look out the window, eyes fixed on the sky.

"That nature can see everything and when it laughs, flowers bloom, and when it weeps, flowers die," he continued, his voice almost sage-like as he spoke, before his distant gaze morphed into a pleasant smile as he looked down to his friend, "so try not to get all moody about this, okay? A sprained ankle isn't a big deal, no matter how embarrassing it was in the way that you got it."

He saw how Nataku seemed to avert his gaze for a second, briefly glancing at his bandaged ankle; he'd gotten it while helping his mother garden, the hazard of him bending over finally proved hazardous after all as he not only tumbled to the ground, but banged both his head and his leg on the way 'down'. It wasn't too bad, granted he couldn't get up nor could he see straight since his focus was momentarily off due to the small bump, hence why Taikoubou had to carry him indoors in front of all the attendants in the garden, which was pretty much why Nataku was crabby towards him all yesterday evening. At the moment, however, the incident seemed to be the last thing on the boy's mind as he stared back down at the delicate, rosy pink petals. Taikoubou made no move to leave as he watched the other for a while, waiting for some kind of response. Finally…

"Taikoubou?"

From what he could tell, the redhead didn't sound too negative right now, in fact, he sounded a bit distant.

"Hm?" he responded, leaning closer.

"You know everything, don't you?"

The question was innocent and…soft; Taikoubou smiled down at the young Paopei Human as he gazed down at his gift, thoughtfully, and ruffled his hair affectionately.

"Yeah. I do."

_And there we go "smiles" The quote, "The Earth laughs in flowers." I believe, is by someone named Emerson, but I dunno really, since I'm only going by what was written on the picture that the quote came from. I honestly love the phrase and wanted to use it, though I made up the following line, although I thought that it fit. And the last part here is homage to Henrietta and Jose from Gunslinger Girl, a series that I plan on looking into, though I already have the first book in the manga series. Well, until next month!_


	6. June

_And here comes June and, boy, was this one a doozy! Seriously, I made this one last minute cuz I didn't know how to write it out, seeing as how I totally forgot my original idea for it, and I was so conflicted on how it would sound. I even had to change the title. So finally I decided, 'Screw it', and wrote it out just the way it sounded "smiles broadly" Hope this means that it turned out okay._

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi aka Soul Hunter, nor do I own its characters and plots, those belong to Mr. Ryu Fujisaki, I just own this little pairing and the cuteness that comes with it._

Winds of Change  
By Daydreamer9

Sheets of linen blew in the wind, the sky above a rich azure color as golden sunlight bounced off the puffy white clouds, making the sky nearly blinding. The air was warm and lightly humid, it having rained last night and the garden out back had been well-watered by the shower…even if it **had** taken a couple of small saplings down with such a wind, but Li Inshi wasn't one to worry over small things like that, unlike her husband. Both trees were still in good shape and could be salvaged and that was all that mattered and, having that be said, their 'resident doushi' had chosen to volunteer.

_It's hard to believe that he's been with us for almost a year and a half now,_ Inshi thought, watching the dark-haired doushi getting to work out in the rather vibrant garden out behind the main building within the Outpost.

Inshi herself had to be talked out of participating by her attendants, her husband, her 'guest' – who was currently doing the work – and, of course, her son. The reason for this was no doubt due to her 'summer cold', as the doctor had mildly put it, and she was still recovering and still got the chills every now and again. Though, that didn't mean that she wasn't permitted to take a small walk along the garden path…out of sight, of course. Her reason for being so interested was because the young doushi wasn't necessarily alone…

"Uh, okay," said doushi called over to his 'helper', "now pull on the rope, **slowly**…"

The red-headed boy assisting him, who had been inspecting the rope moments ago out of curiosity, slowly nodded over to the other and started hovering backwards, pulling the rope in his hands in the process. Attached to the other end of the rope was one of the fallen saplings, roots and overall leafy branches still intact, granted it wasn't very big to begin with, but still a healthy five feet and a half. It started to follow the rope, slowly being pulled to its roots, which were supposed to go into the small hole in the ground beside it, where it had been turned over before during the storm. The doushi helped to steady the small tree as it came up on its own, making sure that it went into the hole just right before smiling up at the redhead.

"Good job, buddy," he congratulated, "knew you were the right man for the job."

The 'man' of about thirteen-years old raised a slender scarlet red eyebrow.

"You were just too lazy to pull…again," he stated, dropping the rope.

Sweatdropping, the other tried to appear unabashed while, from her hiding place, Inshi had to smother a chuckle.

_In all the time that he's been here,_ she thought, smiling at her son's actual success at making a – rather indirect – joke, _Taikoubou seems to have had quite an impact…_

After the hectic events last year that had brought her son back to her in the end, things had been rather calm and peaceful at Chintoukan…well, as much as they could be. Daily routine went on as usual, though Inshi couldn't help but notice the subtle ways that her son had changed. He seemed a bit more concerned with family affairs, more so than normal, and his curiosity about the world beyond the outpost had been awakened to the point where he began to actually start reading, something that he'd stopped doing around age six when he'd dubbed it as 'a dull pastime'. He even got into less fights with his father, but then she also noticed how he also appeared distracted, and despite how hard it was to tell with his daily habit of staring off into space.

But a mother knew how to tell the difference between being deep in thought and simply spaced out and, after thirteen or so years, she'd managed to master reading her son by now, more so than his father had, that was for sure.

"Aw, but you've got more muscle," Taikoubou mock whined in protest, making his was over to his friend, "seriously, have you been working out?" A mischievous glint entered his eye. "Especially with those leg exercises, with your lack of balance, you need it."

He then threw his arms over his head and ducked, pretending to expect an incoming blow from the redhead. For a second, Inshi wondered if she should reveal herself to stop the incoming 'predicament'…but was a bit surprised when it didn't come. Nataku merely gave Taikoubou a deadpan look before actually rolling his eyes.

"You're such a flake," he muttered, hovering past him…but was intercepted when Taikoubou jumped back up and wrapped an arm suavely around the other's shoulders.

"Don't I know it," he agreed, grinning with mirth, "but that's why you put up with me, right?"

Nataku just huffed and Inshi actually found herself getting those motherly tears of pride in her eyes; her son was actually interacting with people, something that she had waited thirteen years or so for. This particular change seemed to occur the day that the doushi entered the Outpost; he needed someplace to stay, but had no money to do so, and, after he'd helped quell the dispute between her husband and son a year back, Inshi didn't even hesitate to agree. He'd work for it, of course, he and Li Sei had insisted on it, as a form of compromise and the dark-haired doushi had become one of the many garden attendants that worked for the Li Clan. He was fairly good at it, though there were those moments where he would slack off from time to time and a hilarious display between him and her husband would take place.

But, all in all, she had to admit that he'd brought many changes with him…

_Nataku has been…nicer, less confrontational and private, ever since Taikoubou returned,_ Inshi mused as she watched the dark-haired doushi ruffle her son's hair, _and…is it my imagination, or is…_

A strong gust of wind blew by, warm and spelling of the rain that had come in the night, ruffling her robes and causing her thoughts to drop for a moment as she hugged herself, forbidding herself to sneeze or succumb to another chill. The wind was felt by the two doushi as well, causing Taikoubou to hold his cloth hat down while Nataku's scarf ends flailed crazily in the wind behind him, like a pair of obscure wings. Squinting at the strong, yet small gale, the emerald-eyed doushi of the duo managed a tight smile.

"The winds are changing…" he commented, almost absently, "the stormy season is due to start again…last night was just a warning."

Nataku said nothing as he waited for the wind to fade, shrugging it off as he hovered forward a bit…only to be met by another gust of wind, just as strong and just as humid. Caught off guard, Nataku halted his movement as the powerful gust knocked him off-kilter causing him to wobble in the air a bit. Normally, whenever it got windy this bad, he would go inside as, being only capable of hovering when not in motion, it was a pain trying to stay focused with air currents slamming into him, making balance hard…like right now. He wasn't moving the first time, so he was fine, but this time he'd been caught in mid-motion, and he was pretty sure that he was about to fall back on his bottom…

…when someone stepped in front of him and grabbed him by the arms, shielding him from the wind and keeping him upright.

The wind took five more seconds to stop, but to Nataku, they felt a little longer as he found himself in what appeared to be a protective hold. As strange as it was, being this way…he almost felt a small shiver run through his body, even though he wasn't cold. The feeling passed quickly and Taikoubou pulled away, smiling down at the redhead, who looked up at him almost questioningly.

"That could've been nasty," the dark-haired young doushi stated with a wink.

Nataku only blinked owlishly a couple of times as Taikoubou walked away from him a ways, looking at the work they did with the saplings before turning back to him.

"Looks like things are okay for right now, but I'd recommend tying them down for a while until their roots get their grip back," he said in an all-business type of manner, "I've got a hunch that we might have another storm within the week."

Nataku only stared at him, oblivious to the wind that blew by, oblivious to the fact that a certain parent was watching him and smiling a very special motherly smile of appreciation towards Taikoubou. Yep, oblivious to all that as he watched the dark-haired doushi turn to give him a smile over his shoulder.

"Well, that's done," he said, making a beckoning motion with his hand, "c'mon, your Mom wants us to check out the dandelion patch next, hear there's some water damage."

Absently nodding, Nataku hovered after his friend as he tried to shake off that weird feeling again, wondering to himself why the air suddenly felt warm around his face. But to the young mother a ways away, she had seen it all and had nothing to say as she watched the two move on past one of the taller trees in the small grove. Inshi took a step away from the shelter of the shrubs and smiled after her son. She had nothing to say, nothing, except for…

"My baby is changing…" she whispered, smiling after the two boys…before finally succumbing to a sneeze.

_Yep, that's all ladies and gents "smiles" Sorry if it came out lame and the like, I just figured that I ought to squeeze in Inshi. I figured it would be good to show how things are progressing from another's point of view, plus I figured it'd be a good way to explain how Taikoubou came to be there in the first place. It's month six and signifies a turning point coming up for our two doushi, one that I might make more known in July! "winks"_


	7. July

_Yo, how's everybody doing? You all ready for July? I wasn't totally sure about this one either, mainly because I wanted to do something a little bit challenging. Hope it comes out the way that I wanted it._

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi aka Soul Hunter, nor do I own its characters and plots, those belong to Mr. Ryu Fujisaki, I just own this little pairing and the cuteness that comes with it._

Summer Daze  
By Daydreamer9

The heat beat down on the outpost during midday, the sky spotted with few clouds and the air itself was warm, causing many to resort to wearing summer-styled kimonos and light-colored clothing. The well was visited more than three times a day by every family, five at most, but there was also much hustle and bustle as the Summer Festival drew near. Already colorful banners and lanterns were being hung up along the street while food stands sold more candies and toys for the young ones. The growing season was thriving, as shown by the various fruits, vegetables, and grains that were currently stocked in the markets.

And some were being purchased by a doushi, among other people.

Taikoubou smiled and gave a nod of thanks to the fruit seller before walking past the fruit stand and down the street. Li Sei and his wife were busy setting up the festival grounds by the main house, seeing as how Inshi was in charge of serving the refreshments this year. He'd agreed to grab some fruit to aid in the event, making his way back with a small sack filled with oranges, apples, and strawberries. It wasn't a long walk, seeing as how the market was in the center of town and the main house wasn't too far away from the front of the outpost. Taikoubou smiled as he watched excited children purchase handfuls of candy in fits of giggles and young girls chatter excitedly, speaking to one another about who would be taking them to the festival.

_Looks_ _as though things are bustling once again in Chintoukan_, the doushi thought with a pleasant smile…which became sour when his stomach rumbled rather noisily, _dammit… I can't believe that I skipped breakfast…and the hotcakes too!_ Melodramatic tears coursed down his face as he recalled how he'd accepted the 'mission' to find all the right ingredients for Madam Li's deserts. This was his third run; first was to get milk, the second was grains, and now he was bringing back the necessary fruit. And with the lines at every stall, it had taken a good portion of the day.

All meaning that Taikoubou, though loyal, was also hungry…and out of money to buy snacks.

_And just my luck too,_ the young doushi continued to mentally moan, watching the kids wolf down their candy as they ran after one another down the street, _I'm surrounded by such wonderful foods…_

It was true; the smell of fresh fruit, barley, milk, and even the vegetables were starting to annoy his stomach more in terms of hunger pains. The fish and meat were farther behind him, but he couldn't be tempted by them even if he wanted to. Feeling his mouth water as he looked around at all the various foods and hearing his stomach growl once more, Taikoubou finally succumbed to his hunger as he looked down at the bag of fruit that he held. Feeling himself start to drool a little bit when he remembered the ripe red apples, the juicy strawberries, and the plump oranges that he had bought-

"Awwww, just one little berry," he reassured himself in a whiney voice, lifting up the bag to open, "for the road…"

He'd barely gotten the sack all the way open when-

"Take one and die."

"GAAAAH!" Taikoubou yelped, the bag jostling in his hands to the point where a few fruits fell free and the hapless doushi leapt nearly two feet in the air with legs flailing before crashing back onto his butt with a graceless 'thud', "owie…" Rubbing his rear end with one hand while still retaining his grip on the bag with another, he cracked an emerald-colored eye open to see a familiar redhead sta-er, hovering over him. "Yeesh, Nataku, a warning would be nice."

Not missing a beat nor looking away, the young Paopei Human continued to stare at the griping, dark-haired doushi.

"I just gave you one," he countered, voice unwavering.

Sporting a pouty face, Taikoubou slowly stood up as he dusted off his, ahem, rear as he continued to give his friend a pleading look.

"Aw, c'mon, Nataku," the doushi continued to whine, teary eyed, "I haven't eaten in three hours. Have a heart."

The redhead didn't even bat an eye at the other's antics as he continued to stair Taikoubou down with a firm stare; his mother had been all for making the refreshments and no way was she going to be disappointed today.

"She needs them **all**, Taikoubou," he told the other, "otherwise it won't be ready by sundown, you're already late." This, of course, made Taikoubou gape a bit, but Nataku continued in an almost casual manner…well, casual for **him**, anyway. "Though I figured you'd try something like this, so I came to check on you."

Taikoubou's gape became wider as he stared at the redhead incredulously.

"You were **spying** on me?" he gasped, then lapsed back into theatrics, "oh, say it ain't so good buddy; I thought that you trusted me enough!"

Nataku merely rolled his eyes and glanced down at the ground, noticing the fallen fruit with a small frown. Taikoubou quickly dropped the act and followed the others averted gaze and spotted what he was viewing. After five seconds of staring…

"That was your fault, by the way," he said, voice deadpan.

"Hmph," came the gruff response and the red-haired Paopei Human kneeled over, bracing his hands down on either side of him to keep his balance; he'd been practicing since the multiple times he'd fallen over.

"Hang on," a voice said from above, causing Nataku to look up to see Taikoubou kneeling down as well, "I'll do it."

Shrugging, Nataku continued what he intended on doing and started to pick the fruit up; by logic, he was technically like them in a sense, but considering that he wasn't planning on ingesting his mother's concoction, he figured that he was safe. It wasn't that he didn't like it, he actually used to enjoy it years back…but now, as both a doushi and the incarnation of a lotus, he was pretty much forbidden. It wasn't like he needed it now, anyway…

Besides…

"So," Taikoubou spoke up, suddenly, "you going to the festival?"

Nataku hesitated for a second before continuing picking up the oranges.

"No," was the short response.

Now Taikoubou hesitated for a second before he then continued picking up the apples.

"Why not?" he asked, curiously.

"I just don't feel like it."

"Really?"

"Yes," Nataku said, a touch exasperated, putting the oranges back inside the bag, "why?"

Taikoubou gave an innocent, leisurely shrug.

"Just asking," was his short response as he slid the apples back in with the oranges.

Staring at the other with faint suspicion, but deciding to let it drop, Nataku went back to the task at hand and started picking up the strawberries. After a few seconds…

"Are you going?" he found himself asking, abruptly.

Taikoubou once again hesitated in mid-grab.

"Huh?" he stuttered.

"Are you going?" the question was repeated, night-blue eyes not looking up.

Taikoubou stared at the other as he thought about the question before giving a shrug.

"It depends," he finally responded, grabbing the berry he'd been aiming for.

"On what?"

"Oh, I dunno…"

Shaking his head, Nataku decided that it was silly to ask to begin with and reached for the last berry in his sight…and allowed another hand to brush up against his as Taikoubou reached for the same one. A little bit startled, the redhead looked up to see the dark-haired doushi giving him a mirrored look and the two merely stared at one another for a long while as the hustle and bustle around them was momentarily ignored. Then, after a couple of minutes, both quickly averted their eyes and withdrew their hands; it brooked a familiar feeling in them both, and yet neither knew what it was…

"Well…"

Looking back up, Taikoubou saw that Nataku was looking to the side, normally stoic expression a bit thoughtful, if not a little bit pensive. After a while, his eyes flickered back to the older doushi's emerald green ones.

"……on second thought…maybe…"

Taikoubou heard the note in his voice and smiled at the other, warmly, the lone strawberry on the floor momentarily forgotten.

_And there we go! "phew" I never thought that this would be finished; lots of personal crap going on in my life, but hopefully it's all been resolved by now. It was a little bit of touch and go with this one since I had personal stuff going on here, but, like I said, it's hopefully gonna turn around and be happy from now on as this last scene possibly portrays. See you in August!_


	8. August

_Now, I have been BUSY with stuff and crap on top of everything else, so it's a pure, clean shock that I managed to finish this chapter at ALL! But I did and I'm proud of it for that, I just hope that it sounds good to you guys._

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi aka Soul Hunter, nor do I own its characters and plots, those belong to Mr. Ryu Fujisaki, I just own this little pairing that I shall root for forever._

Just Beyond the Riverbend  
By Daydreamer9

The air was warm, but not overwhelmingly so; the heat had left along with most of the storms that had graced the previous two months, though a touch of humidity still hung in the air from time to time. But with the skies free of gray, sporting only cotton-like clouds, it was safe to say that the stormy period was over and done with. While most of the time, the crazed winds had done damage to farms, the rain granted greener crops and the trees that lined both sides of the creek sported green, lush leaves. Sweetness hung in the air as thistle and clover bloomed nearby, the running water adding to the serenity of the setting…

…though the redhead hovering above the rocky side of the creek stuck out like a sore thumb.

Nataku had come here initially to meet a friend, but after nearly ten minutes of searching the stony banks, he saw nothing; no sign of a strange cloth hat, no sign of the dark-haired doushi, not even a sign of a fishing bucket…which was quite strange.

"_Went out fishing. Meet me by the banks beyond the west woods to see something really neat."_

Taikoubou

That was what the note in his room said; doushi were forbidden to eat meat, much less kill a fish, so what was he up to? In fact, for the past several weeks, the redhead had noticed how his dark-haired friend seemed to duck in and out of the Outpost, sometimes disappearing at dawn and not returning until late noon. He'd always come back a little bit wet and muddy, and if anyone were to ask where he'd been, he'd just flippantly – and rather innocently, too – say, "Fishing." With him being a doushi, this excuse didn't fly too well and instead had caused a lot of rumors to stir up, it was all his parents could do to stop the lies from spreading, despite their own cluelessness. A doushi, a **Sennin**, going against their own oath intentionally?

Of course, Nataku didn't buy it and that was probably why he found himself here now, doing what he'd initially wanted to do the first time that Taikoubou had come back from the river soaking wet: find out what was really going on.

_He'd never break the rules for something so frivolous,_ he thought, night blue eyes sweeping across the line of dense trees all along the other side of the river, _and he's been acting strange in the past months. What's he hiding?_

Nataku knew that hiding things from other people wasn't something that Taikoubou made a habit of doing. His shifty behavior was actually starting to make him feel uneasy, but the green-eyed doushi never told him anything whenever he'd ask. He'd just smile, wink, and head off to either help his parents or go do his 'mysterious activity', which couldn't **just** be fishing. Hovering closer to the creek-like river, the young Paopei Human looked over the edge and was met by his own reflection, something that mesmerized him for a couple of seconds, just seeing his image distorted in the babbling brook the way it was was…interesting. The last river he went to was the same one that his Paopei had reacted badly to three summer's ago, a time that he didn't necessarily wish to remember. He'd never been near a body of water since…till right this moment.

_And why hide…whatever he's hiding here, of all places?_ he continued to think, leaning over carefully a bit to study his wavering reflection a little closer, from the eerie blue markings to his normally blank night blue eyes, even spotting the small minnows beneath the surface, _and why would he want to show it to me of all people?_

Although it was true that the two were close, Taikoubou possibly being Nataku's only true friend at this moment, the redhead also couldn't help but feel a bit strange around the older Sennin. It wasn't a bad kind of strange, it just stirred up a feeling that Nataku wasn't accustomed to experiencing: he would get nervous if they ever got **too** close, his face would feel warm if the other did so much as ruffle his hair, and, all the same, he didn't feel uncomfortable at all. It wasn't that, he'd always tell himself, he actually…didn't mind it at all. It was just…

Just…

"There you are."

At the sudden voice behind him, Nataku was in the process of spinning around…when he remembered a couple seconds too late about his bad balance when it came to leaning forward. The sudden motion caused his balance to be thrown and altogether caused him to fall backwards, heading for the placid river with a cry of alarm…until a gloved hand reached out and one of his outstretched ones. In an instant, his downward decent was halted and he found himself looking into the amused green eyes of none other than Taikoubou himself. Giving the surprised – if not embarrassed – redhead a small smile, the older doushi pulled the younger one up to his feet…er, wheels, away from the cool waters below.

"Well," Taikoubou said, helping to steady his friend, "at least you can lean over all well and good, now it's just a matter of learning how to straighten up without somebody helping ya." That last part was accompanied by a wink, though it all just made Nataku feel more embarrassed.

"Leave me alone," he muttered, turning away from the other's toothy grin, "did you call me out here just to watch me humiliate myself?"

Taikoubou giggled a little at that one.

"Nah, all I gotta do is wait for that to happen," he joked, then cringed as the other looked as though he were about to take aim…but then stopped when he noticed something.

"Taikoubou, you're wet."

Opening one eye, Taikoubou looked down at his legs where the redhead was staring and saw that he'd noticed how his pants were soaked up to the knee and gave his friend a wry smile.

"Er, well, yeah, sorta had to get wet to do what I was doing," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand.

"Fishing?"

A grin met the question as those bright green, practically emerald eyes took on a mischievous glint.

"Nope," came the response, "that's why I wanted you to come out here. I think that it's just about time."

This got Nataku interested.

"Time for…what?" he asked, cocking his head to one side out of curiosity.

Taikoubou's smile just got wider as he pulled his friend along the bank with a simple, "Follow me." And follow Nataku did, if only to satisfy the question as to what his friend was doing out here, by the riverside and wet, but not fishing. What else could you do by a river besides fish or swim?

"I know that being by water probably isn't a good idea for you," Taikoubou was telling him as they went further upstream, "but I really think that you'll enjoy this."

"Enjoy what?" Nataku asked, feeling like he wasn't being told every single detail, which he probably wasn't with Taikoubou involved.

Taikoubou said nothing more as they continued on down the bank for five more minutes before stopping along one section of the bank that seemed to slope down towards the river with a rather obvious cluster of reeds right across from it. Nataku raised an eyebrow; the area certainly was muddy, was this the place where Taikoubou was always going to?

"Uh, you can let go now," Taikoubou said, causing Nataku to turn and see the other looking down…at where their hands were still holding onto one another. This surprised the redhead; he didn't even realize that he was still holding onto him all this time!

"U-uh, s-sorry," he stuttered, alarm putting a dent in his rather normally stoic disposition as he released the other's hand, barely noticing how Taikoubou's face seemed to have taken on a reddish pigment before he himself turned away, noticing that the warmth in his face had returned.

The two were silent for a while, only the sound of the wind in the leaves and the running water below filling the awkward gap before, finally, Nataku heard movement and looked up to see Taikoubou moving down into the water.

"Taikoubou?" Nataku called out, confused as the dark-haired doushi took step after step into the river, "what are you-"

Taikoubou turned to look at him over his shoulder, smiling knowingly.

"Better leave the Kontenryou on the shore so it doesn't mess up the water," he called over, the water sloshing around his ankles, "now come on, it's probably started by now."

Nataku, of course, was at a loss of what was going on, but when Taikoubou turned back to crossing the river, making his way over to the reeds without so much as a backwards glance afterwards, it was obvious that he expected the redhead to follow him. Seeing as how he obviously had no say in what was happening, Nataku gave a shrug at the sheer confusion of it all, and undid the Kontenryou around his waist, letting the red fabric fall onto the ground as he hovered after Taikoubou, who had reached the reeds by now and was now bent over on his knees, solving one of the mysteries. It was a good thing that the Fuukarin worked underwater, though Nataku still had no idea what was going on as he hovered over to the dun-colored strips of tall grass.

"**Now** will you tell me what's going on?" he asked in exasperation as he finally stood hovering next to Taikoubou…and noticed that there was something on the reeds. Strange, small white foamy objects were all around the lower ends of the tall grass and they each seemed to contain something inside. "What are those?"

Taikoubou glanced up at him and motioned for him to sit down without saying a word, eyes drawn back to the strange foamy white bubbles. Quirking an eyebrow and then looking down at the water a bit pensively before finally heaving a sigh, he slowly lowered himself into the water. The wetness didn't really bother him, it felt a little cool and he had to steady himself a bit, but he finally fixed himself into a comfortable crouching position. He turned to look at Taikoubou and saw that he was fixating his gaze on the bubbly foam on the reeds. Curious, Nataku turned to see just what was so interesting…and froze.

Thousands of tiny, black creatures that looked like miniature minnows without fins and eyes were wiggling their ways out of the foaming, bubble-shaped spheres and wiggle into the water. There were hundreds; swimming, struggling, some still stuck in their bubbles while those who were high above the water braved the drop when they broke free. They were swarming in masses by the reeds, though some were swimming along the shore on both ends of the river. Nataku had never seen these creatures before and watching their quick, wiggling motions was something to behold in his eyes; watching them hatch and learn to swim in mere seconds upon entering the water.

It…fascinated him.

"They're frogs."

This got a surprised expression from Nataku as he turned to where Taikoubou was still looking at the small creatures.

"What?" he asked, confused all over again.

Taikoubou only slightly nodded as he continued to watch.

"They're baby frogs," he repeated, "they're called tadpoles when they're like this. As they get older, they grow legs and become more froglike. We used to have lots of them by my old village and we'd all be there to watch their eggs hatch." He smiled a little at this. "I found them here a few months back and I've been checking up on them whenever I could. Sometimes it would be at night where I didn't know where I was going, so I wound up getting covered in mud." He then turned around, smiling over at Nataku. "Sorry if I worried you all that way, I know everyone must all be spreading rumors about me. But I figured that, since you never get out of the outpost enough, something like this might interest you and you don't even have to go into town."

Nataku said nothing for a minute as he turned back to watch the tadpoles swim, eyelids lowering; it was true. Save for the time he'd come back from the dead and joined Taikoubou for the Houshin Project, he'd never left the outpost before in his life and never really experienced anything outside of his house…until Taikoubou came. He was starting to actually get out more and stay out, Taikoubou even dragged him on small road trips at times, though he still felt more connected to nature than to people, seeing as how nature was never judgmental of him and was also a part of him now since he was brought back to life. Even still…this was one of the first times he'd ever seen something this extraordinary; so small and seemingly insignificant…and yet…

"They sort of remind me of me."

**That** one got Nataku staring back at the other with a perplexed look on his face.

"These guys have a hard road ahead of them," Taikoubou went on, "they've got nobody in their lives to guide them, all they have is instinct that they inherited from their parents and that's it, but most of them still make it in the world. Me? Heh, with my parents gone and nothing really certain for me anymore here in the Ningenkai, I guess I'm not so lucky…at least…" At this point, Taikoubou turned back to gaze long and hard at his associate, emerald green eyes meeting midnight blue. "…I thought I wasn't anyway."

The two just stared at one another for a few seconds longer before Nataku finally spoke.

"Out of curiosity," he asked, deciding that there was just one last question to ask to clear up this 'mystery', "how **did** you find out about this?"

At hearing this, Taikoubou gave him a very big, very wide grin that practically **radiated** innocence.

"Fishing."

_And there you have it! You have no idea how close this thing was to going past the deadline, I mean it, it almost didn't make it! But I just had to redo so many things it's not even funny, but hopefully it sounded okay at the end. It's a little longer than the norm, but that's okay, it gave a little bit more insight for certain things and also dropped some hints for future chapter topics. Hope that you enjoy this chappie and expect September to come out by the first of next month! Adios for now! _


	9. September

_This was the most challenging, but also the most fun. Been wanting to do this one forever XD_

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi aka Soul Hunter, nor do I own its characters and plots, those belong to Mr. Ryu Fujisaki, I just own this little pairing that I shall forever love._

Happy Birthday Nataku  
By Daydreamer9

The crisp chill of autumn was in the air as the trees swayed gently in the wind, evening falling over the land as the birds returned to their nests and the torches were lit outside the walls of the outpost. People were still out mingling, true, but a majority were already inside, the sun setting and just barely visible over the trees, but there was still just enough of the caramel gold light to make out whether or not anyone was coming down the street…

…or over the wall.

Sighing, Governor Li Sei once again wondered how come he got suckered into this and once again the answer came to him: because his wife had given him that puppy dog look and because she also threatened him lack of limbs if he didn't. It wasn't that he wasn't interested in the 'activity' planned today, he honestly wasn't, but seeing as how it'd become a little tedious over time and he saw no actual point of actively celebrating this 'occasion' when the one who was being 'celebrated' would normally care less about it. Yep, to think, the first five years weren't so bad and Inshi had really enjoyed them, but as 'he'd' gotten older, he started to question what the point was and, since Li Sei had no answers, his wife took care of it for him.

"Because it's fun and it's a day where you remember your birth, where people celebrate the first day you came into this world and the first time that they got to meet you."

For awhile, it seemed to have worked…then it dawned on 'him' that no one besides Inshi and Li Sei himself – half of the time being forced, seeing as how the eldest male in the family saw what was coming even before his wife did – ever really came. When he was little, yes, people came out of respect for the governor and his wife…but, well…it wasn't exactly fitting Inshi's description anymore to 'him' and Li Sei had long since accepted that his wife's later attempts would be in vain.

And then **he** came up with this idea.

"Okay, are the streamers in place?" Taikoubou asked in a low voice from his place at the table, putting on the finishing touches.

Li Sei sighed as he glanced over at the confections the older doushi stood over; despite the fact that 'he', wouldn't necessarily be able to eat it due to complications, Taikoubou and Inshi had both insisted that 'it wouldn't be the same without a cake of some kind'.

"Yes," his wife sang out as she practically danced out of the kitchen with a pitcher of milk and glasses balanced haphazardly as each of her steps contained a bounce that would make everything 'on board' wobble, "oh he'll be so surprised! Especially when I told him that I was going to be going out with his father tonight."

Li Sei rolled his eyes again as he glanced out the window, seeing no sign of the person in question.

"You know, it's not like we have a crowd of people in here," he grumbled, "so technically the whole 'surprise' wouldn't be as exciting…"

Inshi gave her husband an admonishing glare as she placed the platter on the table.

"Oh, behave yourself," she scolded, "it's the thought that counts and I think that this'll be a great party."

Once again, Li Sei had no problem with the celebration value, but he knew the 'person-in-question' just as good as his wife when it came to his habits, so he pretty much had a funny feeling that-

"He's just going to grunt the way he always does, ask what the point of it all is, and simply go along with what you want him to do out of respect," the older man grumbled, "the fact that this time you pretty much lied-"

"Fibbed, dear. Fibbed."

"Whatever," he continued, feeling a small pang of annoyance, "but the bottom line is, like it or not, **he's** not going to like it."

Inshi gave her husband a childish pout and even went as far as to stick her tongue out at him while Taikoubou looked up at him, emerald eyes flickering with mischief.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," he chided, setting down his utensils, "in fact, I'd be willing to bet that this year will be different."

Li Sei cocked an eyebrow at the smiling doushi; he was a tricky one, true, but he also was one of the very few friends that Nataku had and this little 'get-together' was all his doing. Li Sei had no real questions regarding what his son had done while he was 'with' him and the other Sennin that he'd heard about through what scant details the redhead had delivered to his mother, who in turn told him. Part of him, at the time, was just glad that he'd gotten out of the house and, more importantly, stopped trying to kill him.

Again, all on account of that doushi who was with them now.

And another thing; he wasn't necessarily blind to the changes that the boy had went through; he was bit more talkative – emphasis on 'a bit' – and wasn't as hotheaded as he was before, which was good, if not a little creepy to him now that his only son no longer wanted to argue or kill him as much anymore. Of course, he **did **tend to still ignore him and the like, but now at least he was doing chores, so Li Sei didn't have **that** many objections. And all on account of this Taikoubou…

Nataku had been a totally different story since the day that he-

A blur of red against the yellowing sky caught his eye and suddenly yanked him out of thought, making him almost tumble over as he – reluctantly – realized that it was show time.

"He's coming," he said, eying the approaching blur; it was true that Li Sei wasn't one-hundred percent fond of his son, being born in such a way he was and considering being a Paopei Human meant that he was a natural born Sennin even before he was 'brought back', Li Sei's previous experience with Sennin made him guarded against the boy, his own child. But it was also true that, despite all of this, he couldn't ignore the fact that the boy was a part of his life and, whether he'd get used to it or not, a part of his family. "Though I still say that this will end badly."

But his little prediction fell on deaf ears as his wife gave an excited squeal, almost tipping over the pitcher of milk, and Taikoubou straightened up, smiling as he quickly rushed over to the lamp.

"Okay, everyone," he said, in a hushed tone, "no noise."

With this warning and a mischievous grin, he turned the light down in the lamp while Inshi practically tackled her husband into a corner, smiling to the brim with excitement as her husband rolled his eyes, silently hoping and praying that his son didn't accidentally blow them up. The telltale sound of small rockets zoomed by the window and around the house until it ended by the front door. There were no footsteps, seeing as how the person in questions didn't necessarily walk, but the door opened regardless and, in the pale golden light just barely coming through the pre-drawn window, they could make out a certain silhouette of the young Paopei Human.

"Taikoubou?" he called out, normally monotone voice lined with confusion, "I'm back."

No one answered, though through the shadows that twilight was bringing, Li Sei saw that Taikoubou was sneaking closer to where the redhead was currently standing, looking around him.

"Are you here?" he called out again, "I couldn't find what you wanted." By now, the younger boy was starting to get a little bit annoyed. "Taikoubou, if you're playing another one of your jokes…"

And just when Li Sei thought that it was time to duck for cover with one of his son's well-known, if not rare, temper tantrums obviously on the way, candle light illuminated the room…a rainbow streamer, lantern-filled, lotus-accented room with a confetti-strewn dining table in the center. Realizing their cue, parents and friend announced the special occasion with a bang…

"SURPRISE!!" Taikoubou and Inshi cried out, grinning happily while Li Sei gave out a lower, somewhat softer, "Surprise…"

The redhead in front of them blinked, looked around the colorfully-decorated room, blinked again, and then looked over at the trio of people clustered in the room.

"Mother?" he asked, a little perplexed, "I thought that you and father were going out."

Inshi laughed a little nervously while Li Sei rolled his eyes skyward.

"Oh, well, I'm sorry sweetie, but in order for the surprise party to be a success, you had to think that we were all out of the house…" she explained, sweat-dropping.

Nataku still looked a little bit confused – and now borderline miffed – but that was when a certain dark-haired doushi strolled up behind him to make it to his right hand side, an arm going around his shoulders to distract him. It worked and Nataku jolted a little, turning to where the hand was on his shoulder to the doushi that it belonged to, who was currently grinning from ear to ear.

"Like our little surprise?" he asked, motioning to the table, "sorry I couldn't get the guys; Youzen was busy and I **still **can't find where Tenka and Raishinshi are situated." He then shrugged, the hint of sadness in his eyes being replaced by a hopeful glimmer. "But there's always next years' planning, this year was sorta spur of the moment, but the good news is that Youzen supplied the streamers." And then he waved a hand over to Li Sei, who suddenly looked a little nervous. "And it was your Dad's idea to add in the lotus; figured it'd that, in a way, there **are **other people here for you."

This seemed to surprise the redhead a little as he glanced at all of the potted, pinkish-white flowers before his gaze settled on the table…and he noticed what was there. In addition to three glasses of milk, there were also three small, hand-sized cakes with yellow frosting dotted with pink splotches…that looked unmistakably like lotus petals. In the center of each was a candle, all three lined up side-by-side. He knew why there were just three, seeing as how he couldn't eat anything derived from plants or meat in any way for rather apparent reasons, but he soon realized what was happening…but he didn't quite know what to make of it all.

"I know how you feel about birthdays, honey," Inshi said, gently, motioning Li Sei to light the candles, "but everybody has them. And even if they're not very elaborate, they still mean something to many people."

Nataku stared at her for a while, not really knowing what to say; he didn't want to say anything cold to his mother of all people…

"Besides, it was Taikoubou's idea," Li Sei threw in while doing is assigned job, hoping to get attention off his wife.

It worked as Nataku's expression became a very good visual aid for the phrase, 'I should have known', and he turned to the grinning doushi behind him.

"Well, this **is **the first of your birthdays I've been present for, and I thought that I'd do something special before I fell into pace with the 'standard' Li traditions," Taikoubou said in his defense, before flashing an honest smile as he reached into his short cloak, "plus…it gave me a very good excuse to get you this."

This being said, he pulled out a small parcel that had been bulging in its hiding place, but was nonetheless safe. He handed it to the red-haired Paopei Human, who in turn stared at it for a few seconds, a little bit surprised that Taikoubou actually bought him something. Usually his mother would do that, not that he expected her to, but still…

"Sweetie," he heard her say behind him, almost admonishingly, "go ahead and take it."

Oh…he still hadn't…

Taking the small, crudely wrapped package from the other boy, Nataku stared at it for a few seconds before finally unwrapping it. The brown wrapping came undone, the string fell away…and Nataku's eyes widened a bit at what was inside. A silky black wall scroll sat in his hands, the paper falling away almost like a cocoon to a butterfly, making it known to him that there was more to it than simple color. Slowly unrolling the scroll, he was taken aback by what was on the cloth: a pinkish-white, open lotus flower. And on either side were words sewn on in white, almost flawlessly…

_Life comes in all forms. Sometimes we celebrate it once a year…and sometimes we do it everyday._

Nataku really didn't know how to respond as he continuously read over it again and again, eyes trained on the letters and the words that they formed as he just barely heard Taikoubou beside him.

"When I saw it, I immediately thought of you," he said, almost sagely, "it seemed to represent you, somehow. And I figured, since you don't like parties, one big cake wouldn't be necessary." The cheer in his voice was back in a flash. "All you have to do now is blow out the candles and make a wish!"

Almost absently, Nataku glanced behind him at the cakes with their candles now lit with his parents both regarding him on either side, his mother smiling, his father actually surprised that his son wasn't being his usual grumpy self (and he once again chalked it up to this mysterious doushi, Taikoubou). Glancing back at a smiling Taikoubou, who gave him a good-natured wink, the younger doushi floated over to the table, holding the scroll close to protect it from the candle flame as he drew closer. Taking a deep breath and keeping in mind what Taikoubou told him, blew outwards, the sharp exhale of breath extinguishing the three points of light.

"Happy Birthday, Nataku."

_Yup, yup, yuppers! Now, I don't REALLY know when his birthday is, but I just took a random guess and decided to give him the same birthday month as me. He could be a Virgo, a late Leo, or an early Libra for all we know XD But yeah, extra long for extra specialness, but it also came close to not coming out at all the recent crap that's been happening with me, but hopefully it's still in the traditional birthday spirit. Hope that you all enjoy it while I come up with October's possibly yummy chapter! Till then!_


	10. October

_This one made me ponder for a good, long time before I FINALLY came up with this idea. I hope that I didn't totally bungle it "sweatdrops"_

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi or Soul Hunter, it belongs to the guy who made the manga, Ryu Fujisaki. So beautiful…_

Fields of Orange Gold

By DayDreamer9

The sky was completely cloudless and a pale, yet so perfect blue, it almost looked like the sea. The air was nice and cool, not hot or humid like the past three months and filled with a crispness that seemed to permeate the very sunlight that drenched the fields below. It was so perfect that, for a while, the redhead hovering above the landscape thought about staying airborne for just a little bit longer, but he realized that he was late enough as it was and he needed to go.

Whether he wanted to or not.

Heaving a sigh, Nataku took off again, heading back towards home from his weekly errands, carrying the large object carefully in his hands. Fall was coming and winter would soon not be too far behind; the redhead gave a shudder, realizing that snow was to come in about another month's time. Eyes downcast and fixated for a while on the multi-colored trees below him, leaves already changing from healthy green to yellow, brown, orange, and red. Crop and other plants would sleep soon and the cold would come blowing back in, both memories making Nataku all the more uneasy as he looked away from the trees and tried to focus on returning home.

_The fields are beautiful this time of year…_he thought, feeling the warmth of the sunlight on his face, _but the 'sleep' will come soon too…_

He soon saw his home in the distance and increased his speed, lowering his altitude as he approached the boxed gray outpost. He soon found himself almost level with the walls, taking note of one figure in particular waiting for him behind the fortifications, waving at him with his trademark goofball smile.

"Yo, Nataku!" he called out as the other drew closer, "see you got back right on time. It's almost evening light."

The redhead shook himself out of thought and slowed down enough for reposition himself in midair so that he was 'standing' in front of Taikoubou, large round object in his arms.

"Was hard to find," he said, indicating to the 'bounty' he had in his arms.

Taikoubou smiled as he leaned over to look at the large, round object, even reaching out to touch it.

"We used to have a few growing in my…old village," he said, rubbing the surface, "nice to know that they're still around this region. This is great…and just what the doctor, or in this case, your mother, ordered."

Nataku looked down at the large orange object with an expression that was borderline exasperated.

"I still don't know why she wants it," he said, hovering over the fortifications and 'onto' the wall passage, "it looks so…"

"Weird?"

"Yeah."

"A plant commenting on a plant, eh?"

Taikoubou instinctively flung his arms around his head and ducked, expecting the other to start aiming, but after five seconds of not hearing the sound of death being charged, he peeked out between his fingers and saw that the red-haired doushi didn't even seem to notice. He was staring back from where he came, almost absently, looking over the sunlit field and the glow in the trees that framed it, miles away, yet still close enough to see and admire. He'd seen it many times in the past, but this time of day always brought on the best lighting that made the whole scene acquire a heavenly look. His arms seemed to slacken a bit with his averted attention, threatening to allow the large, round gourd in his hands to fall to the floor, but someone reacted fast and managed to grab it before it slipped entirely.

Startled, Nataku turned back…and realized that he was almost quite literally nose-to-nose with Taikoubou.

"Better not drop it," the older doushi warned, "if I remember correctly, these things make a really big 'splat'."

Nataku didn't say a word; he couldn't stop staring for a few seconds as the other removed the large gourd from his arms, feeling his face slightly warm up. He tried to shake it off, but had no luck, and opted for looking away. He'd been feeling this was on and off over the past few months and it was making him feel uncomfortable; just what was going on? Why did he feel this way every time he was with Taikoubou? He'd never been so shy before, but he always seemed to get that way whenever the older doushi stood next to him or came near him or even smiled at him. It made him feel strange, but not in a bad way; he actually felt content most of the time and even though the other could be annoying at times and exasperating, Nataku realized that he was slowly getting used to such things in his life and surprisingly didn't mind.

He was getting used to having Taikoubou in his life.

"So, whatcha thinkin' about?"

The question knocked him out of his introspection as he looked back over to Taikoubou, blinking rather owlishly in confusion.

"Huh?" he asked, confused gaze meeting a warm smile.

Taikoubou, with his arms full, inclined his head towards the field that he'd been looking at before.

"Saw you looking out over that field," he stated, watching the other curiously, "any particular reason?"

Nataku was silent for a while, thinking over what the other had asked him before gazing out at the beautiful scenery himself.

"I dunno," he admitted, shrugging, "I just like it…"

Taikoubou followed his gaze, looking out over the fields as the noonday sun dyed it a beautiful mix of orange and gold, making the green fields and trees like emeralds against a sapphire sky. It was a breath-taking sight and a true sign of the coming autumn months, one of the only times that gourds like the one that he was holding could be grown. That was the main reason why Nataku's mother had asked for one, so that she could make a welcome change to her normally herbal and flower garden…

A gourd that was the same color as the fields that his friend had just recently flown over, the same exact shade, like a true omen of autumn.

"Fields of orange gold," he mumbled, absently.

Nataku caught the phrase anyway and turned to face the other, whose stare lingered on the field just a few moments longer before he turned back and smiled at his red-haired friend.

"Well," he said, breaking the trance as he hefted the gourd in his arms into a more comfortable position, "we better get this to your Mom. Maybe she can make a pie once she gets all the seeds." With that, he turned to go, but stopped after a few steps were taken, something coming to mind from earlier, something that he'd noticed in his friend all week. "Oh, and don't worry about it…"

Nataku, who was floating after Taikoubou, stopped in mid-flight to stare at the back of his friend's head.

"Worry…about what?" he asked, puzzled by the abrupt comment.

"About the coming winter," came the calm, gentle response, "you'll be fine."

With that, he continued his walk along the Outpost's wall, the large, round orange gold pumpkin held securely in his hands. Nataku didn't follow, staring after his friend in a mixture of confusion and…another emotion. How had he known? He'd said nothing, had done his best to hide it, and yet the older doushi had somehow picked up on it. The redheaded Paopei Human didn't know what to say, unable to find the words, but he couldn't just say nothing…

He didn't want to…

"H-hey," he called out, hesitantly, "T-Taikoubou…?"

More than five feet away, the older doushi hesitated and glanced at the other over his shoulder, emerald green eyes catching the light of the sun, making them truly look like emeralds.

"Yeah?" he asked, expectantly.

Unable to say anything for a few seconds, unable to stop looking into the other's eyes, Nataku faltered for a few seconds before finally being able to find the words that he needed, wanted, to say.

"………………thank you."

"_falls over" My God! I just keep cutting it close, don't I? But even though I think that this one was a touch bit on the sloppy side, I really am proud of it. I hope that you all love it and enjoy until it's November's turn…and I have a little surprise in store for you all in that one! "smiles" Tootles! _


	11. November

_Here it is! What you've all been waiting for! XD_

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi or Soul Hunter, it belongs to the guy who made the manga, Ryu Fujisaki. I dedicate this to him "smiles"_

What Blooms in Autumn

By DayDreamer9

The air was cool, a small chill that snaked though the trees in the form of a gentle breeze, rustling the russet and orange leaves above. Multiple leaves clinging to their branches while even more lay on the ground, littering the green grass with spots of gold and brown and red. Very few leaves were still green, the trees in the forest all getting ready for winter that would soon be here in a few weeks time. The area outside the Chintou Outpost, right around the wooded area, was usually only occupied by those of the furred and feathered variety…but today was different.

Today a doushi was wandering through the forest for a change.

Watching the multi-colored leaves tumble to the ground and continued to pile high, Taikoubou took in a breath of the crisp autumn air before stopping beneath one of the said trees. He had a lot on his mind…particularly something that had happened not five minutes ago:

Flashback – A While Ago…

The wind had been blowing more then, whipping through the trees and causing a rain of leaves to fall over the head's of two individuals that were wandering through said trees, one red leaf being snatched from mid-flight by a yellow-gloved hand.

"_So what did you want to talk to me about, Nataku?" Taikoubou asked, observing the intricate patterns of the leaf as he drew it closer, "you normally don't like coming out around this time of the month…"_

_The last part made him glance up and over at the redhead, noting how he looked a little pensive as he glanced over at the falling leaves around him. Ever since he was brought back, he'd obtained a deep aversion towards winter months, fearing that his plant-side would kick in if he stayed too long. Taikoubou knew that the fear was irrational, that he was more human than plant, but to Nataku, the fear was just there and there was nothing that he or anyone else could do about it. So, of course, when he'd asked Taikoubou if he wanted to go **outside** in the **cold air** of a **winter month **and in the **woods** in the state that they were in of all places, the green-eyed doushi was starting to wonder just what the heck was going on. _

_Had he finally faced his fears? But why drag him all the way outside, in the middle of the woods for that matter, to tell him that? And he obviously hadn't overcome the fear, as he was glancing tensely at the falling leaves and fidgeting every now and again, making Taikoubou wonder if the cold air was starting to get to him. His own clothing was fit to handle cold weather, but Nataku's wasn't. And the way he'd ushered them both out, almost begging the older doushi to come outside with him. It was like he was in a hurry…_

"_I just…wanted us to be alone…for this," Nataku said, somewhat hesitantly, looking at the ground._

_**That** got Taikoubou's attention; not because of the alone bit, they often hung out by themselves, but the fact that Nataku spoke in an actual nervous tone. Normally when the redheaded Paopei Human had something to say, he just spat it out regardless of the consequences, always favoring the be brutally honest, but now he was practically borderline stuttering. He even **looked** uncomfortable and that was a first, even to him. It made Taikoubou nervous and a little bit worried…_

"_Alone?" he asked, blinking a bit in confusion before giving the other a small smile, "we could have had that back at the Outpost…"_

_Was it just him or did Nataku just look more nervous than before?_

"_No…I…didn't want my parents to be around," was the response, eyes not lifting from the ground._

_Suddenly Taikoubou began to get a sneaking suspicion that it wasn't just the cold air and the sense of slumber that hung in it for all trees and plants that had Nataku unnerved. _

"_Is something wrong?" he asked, lowering the leaf that he'd been examining, worry now all over his face; was there some problem? Something that the other was afraid to tell his parents? Nataku normally didn't keep secrets from anyone, especially not his parents…well, his mother anyway, his father was another story…_

_Nataku looked up at him, briefly, and for a second, Taikoubou could have sworn that the other's cheeks were flushed red._

"_I…" was the only response that he got, the younger doushi actually folding his arms in an almost self-comforting fashion._

_The whole thing radiated insecurity. _

_That was most definitely **not** Nataku at all._

_Crossing the gap between the two, in a heartbeat, Taikoubou reached out to the other boy, resting a hand on his shoulder. The redhead actually seemed to tense up upon feeling this touch, but did not pull away._

"_Nataku, what is it?" he asked, thoroughly worried, "I've never seen you get this way before. Is something the matter?"_

_Silence followed through for a few seconds after that; all that could be heard was the wind and the rustle of leaves, the scents of autumn wafting through the air. _

"_For almost a year now, I…" Nataku began, suddenly, still not looking at Taikoubou, opting to instead study the leaf-strewn grass, "…I've been…getting these strange feelings…inside, and…I don't know…or I didn't know……" He stopped for a few seconds, taking deep breathes as he finally managed to spit out what he wanted to say…sort of. "I-I do now…b-but, I…I'm just……"_

_He stopped speaking and turned away from Taikoubou, causing the older doushi's worry to just increase; what was going on? What was Nataku talking about? Feelings……did something happen? Silence reigned once more for a long time and Taikoubou noticed that Nataku's shoulders were beginning to tremble a little. At a loss at what to do, distressed that the younger doushi – and this particular doushi that he knew so well – was acting so strangely, Taikoubou did the first thing that came into his mind. Reaching out with his other hand, Taikoubou gently took the redhead's chin, and turned his head back to face him. _

_He was shocked when he saw that the other's face was contorted in a confused, almost pained grimace, his night blue eyes filling like tears, glistening the way that they'd been that night in the rain so many months ago. Had this all really been a year? He felt his cheeks warm for some reason, especially in the cold. He was so busy contemplating this, he didn't coherently notice that a red blur of hair zoomed right up into his face-_

-and the next thing he knew, a pair of lips were locked onto his, adding more warmth to his face.

_Taikoubou really didn't know how to react once he realized what had happened, noting absently that the redhead was gripping his arms as their lips were locked, almost perfectly. His eyes were closed, the silvery tears still swelling under his closed eyelids, and even then his expression seemed both relieved and still pained at the same time. Taikoubou's own emerald eyes were wide and filled with shock; this was the last thing that he was expecting to happen and he was simply too stunned to do anything else but awkwardly place his hands on the other's shoulders, unsure of what to do. He wouldn't shove the boy away, no matter how shocked he was…_

_And…also…he didn't really much mind._

_This, to his shock, was the truth; he didn't feel any negative emotions at that point in time, no revulsion or anything related to it…instead, he was just…surprised. But…then again…he slowly started to realize something…_

_Before that realization had completely formed in his mind, Nataku's eyes widened and he suddenly pulled away from the other, who was snapped out of his state of bewildered surprise and stared at him…in fear? Taikoubou, absently raising a hand to his lips, stopped halfway when he saw the look on the other's face…and that realization fully hit him, starting with the things that the other boy had mentioned and it all became so perfectly clear._

_And, like an idiot, he'd been completely blind to it until right now._

"_Nataku…?" he was finally able to say, noting the totally scared look that had blanketed his face and wincing to himself when he realized what the younger doushi must be mentally going through; had it really been a year? It'd been that long and he hadn't even suspected…?_

_The redhead's expression just seemed to grow worse, making the dark-haired doushi's heart seize up and sink at the thought of the other being afraid of him. Before Taikoubou could say anything else, anything at all, the Paopei Human child whirled around and, in a burst of powerful wind and tame fire, bolted from the area, rocketing back the way that they had entered the forest._

"_Nataku! Nataku, wait!" Taikoubou called out, desperately, even running after the redhead, even though he knew that the other was far too fast for him to keep up with. This in mind, he stumbled to a stop, watching as his friend – and possibly even more – flew farther and farther away from him._

"…_wait…" _

Flashback End…

Taikoubou reached up to touch his lips again; they were still warm from the kiss that they shared, the scent of lotus still hung in the air around him, but the one who normally carried the scent was nowhere to be found. Eyelids lowering in sadness, said emotion grew worse as he clenched his hands into fists, remembering how scared the boy looked before he had fled and, for the first time in a long while, he felt his own eyes mist over.

"I'm so stupid…" he muttered to himself, standing alone amidst the falling leaves, "how come I never knew…" The wind blew by then, carrying his words on the wind. "…that you'd fallen in love with me?"

_Yeah, I know, it's a little beyond sloppy, but I'm still proud of how it turned out, despite not being the original idea. Well, the secret is out, but what can Taikoubou do about it now? You'll find out next month where things might just turn out right after all in a thrilling conclusion to Year of Love! See you then!_


	12. December

_THIS IS IT!! THE LAST CHAPTER!! Will these two ever get together? You'll just have to wait and see!_

_I do not own Senkaiden Houshin Engi or Soul Hunter, it belongs to the guy who made the manga, Ryu Fujisaki. If only I could meet him…_

Year of Love  
By DayDreamer9

Standing before the door that he'd stood before many times before, Taikoubou took a deep breath as he glanced down at the small bag that he held. He was nervous, but also very hopeful at the same time, perhaps he was even excited. For a solid month and a half, things had been…different, but he was hoping that things would get back to normal today…he was praying for it.

_He hasn't talked to me at all since that day,_ the green-eyed doushi thought with sadness, his grip on the bag increasing, _and I've wanted to talk to him so badly…_

Taking a deep breath, he reached out and took hold of the door, his heart pounding in his chest.

_Here goes nothing…no, here goes __**everything**__…_

-+-

It had started back a month and a half ago.

First of that month was the day that he realized what the strange feeling he'd been getting lately was, the day he knew why his face kept heating up whenever the two of them drew close, the day he understood the strange sense of peace that was around him whenever the other was nearby, the day that he found himself wondering what to do…and ultimately waiting weeks before he finally had to say something. He'd gotten Taikoubou out someplace private, away from his parents (who didn't know anything about the way that he felt), and had…**attempted** to tell him how he felt. But then he found himself unable to say the words; he didn't understand why it was so hard to say, why he kept stumbling over his words that he wanted to say so badly, why he couldn't breath or even swallow as he tried to tell the other how he felt.

And then when he came closer…even now he didn't really understand what happened…but for at least a few moments, he felt as though he was in heaven. He didn't want that moment to end, but when he realized what he'd done, he couldn't stop the ice cold fear he felt from taking over and he flew away from there before the other could say a word. He was afraid to hear what he would say…afraid…afraid of what he himself had just done. He couldn't even bare to look at him or be near him, he was so ashamed: all he wanted to do was talk, that was all, and instead…he just made everything more complicated.

So, for nearly three weeks, Nataku had been avoiding Taikoubou like the plague…and was beyond miserable because of it.

He'd always make sure that the other wasn't in the hall or even the house before he left his room, he wouldn't even answer his door unless it was his mother, and refused to go out into the garden or even atop the wall for fear of running into him. His mother, to say the least, was worried sick and thought that he himself was becoming ill while his father assumed it was due to his 'winter episodes', but the redhead knew that he couldn't go with that excuse for long. His mother was beginning to suspect and he knew that he couldn't stay cooped up in his room forever…or could he? Maybe he could, anything to keep him and Taikoubou out of the same room, to keep the other from talking to him.

And telling him the thing that Nataku was afraid to hear.

_How did this happen to me? _he found himself thinking again for the thousandth time that month, sitting beside his window on the floor, looking idly out the window with the glummest expression on his face, _I don't understand…I'm hurting inside, but I'm not injured. And why…why am I so afraid? I thought that I wanted this…or at least, I thought I did…_

The answers didn't come as he sat there, day after day, looking up at the cold winter sky, at the thick clouds that cried snowy tears, like he'd done that night when he'd 'returned'. It marked the second time in his life that he'd ever cried and, for some reason, this time just seemed worse than the first. The dull ache in his chest wouldn't go away and it would just flare up whenever he caught sight of the dark-haired doushi, making him short of breath, but he didn't dare go near him. What if the other doushi hated him now?

_He has every right to hate me,_ the redhead though, hugging his knees closer to his chest.

He heard the door slide open behind him, but he didn't even blink; it was probably his mother, she'd been worried sick about him for two weeks, making him feel guilty. Still, he wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone right now. After a few seconds passed and there was nothing but silence, save for the sound of the door closing, and quiet footfalls, Nataku heaved a heavy sigh and buried his face in his drawn knees and folded arms.

"I don't want to talk about it," he murmured, feeling a chill in the air as the weather outside proceeded to suck up all the heat inside the room, let alone the whole entire house.

Silence reigned again, then-

"I think we should."

Something inside of Nataku's chest seized up and he looked up, eyes wide as the footfalls came closer until they were right beside him. Then a rustle of movement and a blur of color in his peripheral let him know that there was somebody sitting besides him. Somebody that he'd been trying his hardest to avoid…

"Hey," Taikoubou said, gently, from besides him, "door was open. Figured I'd come in the check on ya." A pause as the other looked out the window and watched the snowflakes silently fall from the sky. "You've been like a ghost, lately. I hardly see you anymore."

Nataku finally managed to start breathing again as he looked away, suddenly feeling more colder than he had been a few minutes ago.

"I've missed seeing you around. The house just feels so empty…"

The redhead buried his face in his drawn arms and knees.

"And you know…your mother's really worri-"

"Taikoubou."

The dark-haired doushi stopped talking as he turned to the other, a little surprised: he sounded like he was ready to cry…

"You…you don't have to pretend that…that everything's okay," the redhead said, his voice a near whisper, "I know that…that you're just trying to make me feel better…"

There was a long silence after that, a silence so thick that it was capable of being cut with a knife. There was a shift in movement beside him and he was sure that the other was getting up to leave…until he felt someone tap him on his shoulder. Cringing a bit, he reluctantly looked up after a few seconds…and found himself staring at a small, brown, sweet-smelling confection that he'd seen his mother eat a few times in the past.

"The last time that I checked, something milk and powder-based ingredients don't conflict with your vow of not eating anything plant or meat-oriented," Taikoubou was saying in a tone that implied he was attempting to be casual, "and since your Mom has so much of these about, I figured it wouldn't hurt for you to try some." He gave the redhead a lop-sided smile. "Besides, they say that chocolate is for the lonely. The lonely and the depressed, I should say." He then looked as though he were trying to remember something, though his expression sported an almost comical element. "Or was it the depraved?" He then shrugged almost nonchalantly. "Oh well, either way, fits us both rather well…"

Nataku stared at the confection as he listened to Taikoubou's attempt at lightening the atmosphere, confused as to why he was even **trying** to be funny. Could he not stand to be in the room with him? After what he did…

"…uh…I-" was all that the young Paopei Human could make out before he found something small and square-shaped being placed inside his mouth, "umph!"

"There we go!" came the cheery response from other doushi, who was now giving him a smile, holding a bag that the younger of the two identified somewhat detachedly was filled with more of the brown sweets, "don't you feel better already?"

Nataku couldn't really reply with the obvious detriment in his mouth; he felt foolish if he spat it out, but he wasn't sure what else to do with it, so he just sat there with a somewhat funny, puckered look on his face as he watched Taikoubou plop one in his own mouth quite casually. At a total loss of what to do, Nataku just sat there with the candy in his mouth, the confection slowly melting away until finally, he was able to swallow it without much of a problem…though the sweet taste did nothing to aid in his confusion.

_Why…?_ was the number one word in Nataku's vocabulary right now as he stared at the green-eyed doushi for a couple of seconds before he decided to grab the bull by the horns.

"What are you doing?" he asked, bluntly, though one could easily tell that he was in somewhat of a daze at what was going on.

Taikoubou glanced over at him once he finished chewing and swallowing the confection that was in his own mouth, the corners of his mouth twitching slightly upwards in a small smile as he suddenly leaned in close.

"Oh look," he pointed out, a bit innocently, "you have some on your lips."

Giving the other an odd look, noting how he avoided the question completely, and opened his mouth to ask again.

"Answer me," he said, starting to get annoyed; why was he doing this? Why was he pretending that everything was all right when it wasn't? "What-"

He didn't have time to finish the question as the bag of sweets fell to the floor as the older doushi who held it leaned forward, reaching out with his right hand to take the younger one's shoulder as they drew close to the point where their noses were nearly touching. Nataku froze, feeling the other's breath against his cheek as his emerald eyes were halfway closed.

"Tai-Taikoubou…?" he managed to stutter out, fighting for breath, "wha-mph!"

A pair of soft lips pressed against his, silencing him as the redhead's senses were sent for a very large loop, eyes widening as his breathing came close to a full stop as the familiar warmth spread across his face. The two remained that way for what felt like an eternity; Nataku eventually felt himself relaxing as his eyes closed part way, enjoying the feeling that spread from his lips to the rest of his body along with sheer happiness as he realized what was happening. Leaning into the kiss more, Nataku raised his right arm and placed it on Taikoubou's shoulder to mimic the other's motion while he felt his other arm go around the other's waist…and the move was mimicked in full. They drew closer together in an awkward form of hug, still kissing, both their eyes closed until it became obvious that they both needed air and, reluctantly, separated.

Their eyes opened and a pair of night blue eyes were looking questioningly into a pair of sad emerald ones.

"I'm sorry," the older of the pair said, softly, his right hand moving up to stroke the other's hair, gently, "I didn't realize how you felt about me till…" He stopped, frowning as his hand trailed down the side of the other's face, causing both of their cheeks to flush with color. "I'm so sorry…it must have driven you crazy all this time, keeping it inside."

Nataku averted his eyes, glancing out the window at the snow-covered roofs beyond his house, at how the snow ceased falling…and the sky appeared to be clearing up as slivers of bright blue could be seen in the sky. It was no longer cold, at least, not to him, and the wintry fear that normally possessed him was oddly absent. He unconsciously drew closer to Taikoubou, head falling against his chest as his eyes wandered again to the floor, falling upon the discarded bag of chocolate as he enjoyed the warmth of the other. He'd planned this whole thing; Nataku never gave him the chance to speak, so he instead chose this method to show how he truly felt.

Something that made Nataku very happy…beyond happy even.

He doubted that a name had been invented for this feeling yet.

"Ah, I see we're eying the chocolate some more."

The singsong tone that the other sported alerted Nataku, causing him to look up to see the sneaky grin that was coming across Taikoubou's face.

"Thinking of getting another **cleaning**?" he asked with a wink, adding emphasis to the word 'cleaning' with an almost sly undertone.

It didn't take long for Nataku to realize what the other was implying and that made him do something that he never thought that he would ever do for anyone, not even for his mother, in his entire life.

He smiled.

_BOOYAH!! I DID IT!! I managed to complete a story! XD And a good one at that ^_^ I sure hope that you all enjoyed this budding relationship of non-stop romance. It may leave room for a sequel and I might just deliver if the idea for one happens to float my way ^^ Well, enjoy the holidays as much as I hope you enjoyed this story, and thanks for reading!_


End file.
